Your Mission, Should You Choose to Accept it

By Dixie Darr

"It is not our abilities that show what we truly are. It is our choices."
--- Professor Dumbledore (J. K. Rowling)

I recently agreed to teach a class in Finding Your Mission in Life. It’s a subject I’ve been exploring off and on for twenty years or more, because, as the Blues Brothers said, “We’re on a mission from God.” Here’s what I believe and a little of what I’ve learned about the topic.

We were put on earth for a reason and, in some way, that reason involves making the world a better place for our having been here. We seek, acknowledge and accept our missions along a continuum ranging from “never give it a thought” to “wholeheartedly.”

Some lucky people seem to be born knowing why they are here. Others spend their lives searching for their mission in life. Even those who recognize and follow their calling early in life may find that it changes shape at different stages in their lives.

Certain professions, such as ministry, healthcare and teaching, are typically associated with being a calling or vocation, but your mission can be anything you feel you were born to do. Laurie Beth Jones, author of The Path: Creating Your Mission Statement for Work and for Life, is careful to point out that your mission is not your job. “Your job may be and ideally should be part of your mission, but a mission is always larger than a job.” It encompasses your whole life.

There’s a famous story about a man passing by a construction site. He stopped and asked one of the tradesmen what he was doing. The worker replied gruffly, "I'm laying bricks, can't you see that?" The man watched a while longer and then asked another worker what he was doing. "I'm just earning a living," he replied. A third time the man asked a worker and the response was much different, "I'm building a cathedral."

What are you doing today? Are you just laying bricks or are you building a cathedral?

©2006 Dixie Darr. All rights reserved